The amendment was agreed to.
The first section upon the attorney general
was again taken up and read as amended as
follows:
"Section 1. There shall be an attorney
general elected by the people of the State, on
general] ticket, on Tuesday next after the first
Monday in November, in the year eighteen
hundred and sixty-four, and on the same daw
in every fourth year thereafter, who shall
hold his office for four years from the first
Monday in January next ensuing his election,
and until his successor shall be elected and
qualified, and shall be re-eligible thereto, and
shall he subject to removal therefrom for in-
competency, wilful neglect of duty, or mis-
demeanor in office, on conviction in a court
of law."
Mr. GALLOWAY moved to strike out the word
"people" in line second, and to insert "qual-
ified voters."
The amendment was agreed to.
QUESTION OF ORDER,
Mr. AUDOUN moved to increase the salary
from two thousand five hundred dollars lo
three thousand dollars, and to add " he shall
not, during the time he shall so hold office,
engage in the practice of the law, except in
behalf of the State."
Mr. HEBB. I rise to a point of order. That
is in section three; and we have got through
with that section. It is not in order to go
back to it now.
Mr. CLARKE. Unless the previous question
has been called, we can recur to the section
by a mere motion,
Mr. SANDS. If that is the construction of
the rule's, what binders a recurrence to every-
thing we have done, even including„ the
adoption of the fourth and twenty-third arti-
cles of the bill of rights, during the four or
five months we have been sitting here? What
binders it if we can go back and recur to a
section that has been passed to a third read-
ing?
The CHAIRMAN (Mr. Pugh.) This section
has not been passed to its third reading.
Mr. SANDS. It has been acted upon.
Mr. DANIEL. The section was not passed
over until the president had asked if there
were other amendments to be offered to it;
and then passing it overhead the effect of voting;
that it should he the section, it superse-
ded the necessity of voting, and took the
place of the previous question. If the previous
question is not moved, we pass on to
another section, and that has the effect of a
vote.
The CHAIRMAN. The chair does not so un-
derstand it. The section was not voted upon
the previous question not having been called
upon it.
Mr. SANDS. Then under the ruling of the
chair, we can go back to any section in any |
report, where the previous question was not
called.
Mr. CLARKE. All the other reports have
passed lo a third reading. This is still on its
second reading; and that is the distinction.
We simply recur to a section that was passed
over, in order to amend it and put it in per-
fect sill UP.
Mr. HEBB. I have never seen such a course
adopted before. The president announced
the next section, which was equivalent to the
unanimous consent of the convention to pass
that section. The only way to get back to
it is by reconsideration. Any one can move
to reconsider, the vote being' unanimous.
The proper time to offer an amendment to an
article is when it is under consideration. We
have passed through all the sections reported
by the committee, and of course they have
all been acted upon. If we wish to recur to
any we must vote to reconsider.
Mr. CLARKE. It. is a mere point of parlia-
mentary law; but it is better to be correct.
If the house desires not to act upon the
amendment, the house will vote not to recur
to the third section; so that the matter is
fully under the control of the house. But if
we we're to reconsider, what vote have we
got to reconsider, no vote being taken? The
journal does not show that any vote was
taken, and unless a vote was taken, there is
no vote to reconsider.
Mr. DANIEL. It was taken by unanimous
consent, and hence anybody can move to re-
consider.
Mr. CLARKE The journal does not show
any such unanimous consent.
Mr. SANDS I illink the views expressed
by the gentleman from Allegany (Mr. Hebb)
are conclusive. The question is put to the
house, are there anymore amendments? if
there are none, unanimous consent is given
to pass to the next' section.
The CHAIRMAN. The chair decides that it
has been the course heretofore to recur to a
section for the purpose of amendment, and
that it is in order to recur to this section by
a motion to recur. The question therefore
is, will the convention recur to section three
for the purpose of [amendment?
The question being taken, the motion to
recur was rejected.
The report was then ordered to be engrossed
for a third reading.
MILITARY DEPARTMENT.
Mr. STOCKBRIDGE. moved that the conven-
tion proceed, to the consideration of the re-
port of the committee on the militia.
Mr. WICKARD. Inasmuch as the minority
report has not yet been printed in bill form
I suggest that we pass over that for the pres-
ent, and I move that we tike up the report
of the committee con usury.
Mr. STOCKBRIDGE withdrew his motion.
The motion of Mr. WICKARD was agreed to. |
